Supreme Court Halts Execution of Ahmedabad Blast Convict Ahmed Bawa Abubakar Barelvi

Ahmedabad, October 1 (Daily Kiran) : The Supreme Court of India has intervened in the case of Ahmed Bawa Abubakar Barelvi, who was sentenced to death for his involvement in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial bomb blasts. On Thursday, the court issued a stay on his execution while reviewing a petition challenging the Gujarat High Court’s decision that upheld both his conviction and death sentence.

A special bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Augustine George Masih, and Sandeep Mehta heard Barelvi’s Special Leave Petition (SLP) and directed the Gujarat government and other respondents to respond to the notice.

Represented by lawyer Ashutosh Thakur, Barelvi contested the High Court’s ruling, which confirmed his conviction and death penalty. During the proceedings, Thakur argued against the findings that led to Barelvi’s conviction, asserting that he was wrongfully judged based solely on allegations of conspiracy.

On February 18, 2022, an Ahmedabad sessions court found 49 out of 78 accused guilty, sentencing Barelvi and 38 others to death. The remaining 11 were given life sentences, while 29 were acquitted.

The bombings, which occurred on July 26, 2008, resulted in 56 fatalities and over 200 injuries across various locations in Ahmedabad. Following the attacks, a total of 35 FIRs were registered, leading to 548 charge sheets being filed. The trial court’s verdict spanned nearly 7,000 pages, with the case file containing approximately 788,000 pages of documentation.

Defendants in this case hailed from multiple states, including Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Jharkhand. They faced trials under various laws, including the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Explosive Substances Act, and the Information Technology Act.

After the sessions court’s death penalty ruling, the Gujarat government sought to implement the sentences against the 38 convicts. Currently, the Supreme Court has issued a notice on Barelvi’s petition and has temporarily halted his execution.